Digital astroturfing as an instrument of creating political processes. An outline to the issue

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to introduce the problem of digital astroturfing in the political context. While astroturfing in traditional media has received many studies, digital astroturfing has not been extensively researched. The focus is on the definition, key attributes, identification of forms, instruments and indication of participants sponsoring and implementing information operations that are aimed at influencing social and political processes. The author attempted to answer the question about the possible consequences of artificial inspiration of the political phenomena by decision-making centers in terms of internal politics and functioning in the international environment. The paper also summarizes the discussed literature and highlights research challenges and directions for future research.